Sketch corner: Ba Temple

This place is also the Tue Thanh Assembly Hall of the Chinese people of Tue Thanh origin (the old name of Guangzhou, China) of Guangdong state - the largest state of Chinese people in Cho Lon.

Góc ký họa: Chùa Bà - Dấu ấn Hoa kiều Quảng Đông- Ảnh 1. — Sketch by Architect Phan Dinh Trung

According to cultural researcher Nguyen Dinh, the pagoda originally had a ground plan in the shape of the letter Khau (a house on four sides, with a skylight in the middle). While in Vietnamese temples and pagodas, the incense burner is usually placed behind or outside the main hall, Ba Pagoda places the incense burner right in the skylight, in front of the main hall. In 1908, the pagoda expanded the skylight with the central hall in the middle. On the system of columns and rafters are parallel sentences and large characters showing unique Chinese techniques such as calligraphy, carving, gilding, etc.

Ký họa của họa sĩ Thái Lan Sutien Lokulprakit — Sketch by Thai artist Sutien Lokulprakit

Ký họa của KTS Phan Đình Trung — Sketch by Architect Phan Dinh Trung

Ký họa của KTS Phùng Thế Huy — Sketch by Architect Phung The Huy

Ký họa của Huỳnh Hoàng Khang - sinh viên Trường ĐH Văn Lang — Sketch by Huynh Hoang Khang - student of Van Lang University

Ba Pagoda stands out with its reliefs and colorful ceramic statues on the eaves, roof, and walls based on ancient Chinese legends such as: Two dragons fighting for a pearl, the four sacred animals, the eight immortals crossing the sea, Phuc Loc Tho, Tang Tang and his disciples...

Ký họa của sinh viên Ngô Quốc Thuận - Trường ĐH Nguyễn Tất Thành — Sketch by student Ngo Quoc Thuan - Nguyen Tat Thanh University

Nơi dán những mong cầu của khách - ký họa của KTS Linh Hoàng — The place to post customers' wishes - sketch by architect Linh Hoang

Múa lân chùa Bà - ký họa của KTS Linh Hoàng — Lion dance at Ba Pagoda - sketch by architect Linh Hoang

Sân trong chùa Bà - ký họa của KTS Linh Hoàng — Inner courtyard of Ba Temple - sketch by architect Linh Hoang

Making statues is a typical profession of the Foshan region, Guangdong, which was born around the 16th century and developed in Cho Lon around the 19th century with famous kilns at that time such as Dong Hoa, Buu Nguyen... Statues were only used for decoration, creating a joyful and intimate atmosphere for sacred places. Statues appeared a lot in communal houses, pagodas, and temples in Cho Lon, Bien Hoa, Binh Duong and the West, but were lost in the early 20th century.

Lò thiêu hương ngay giếng trời, trước chánh điện - ký họa của KTS Trần Xuân Hồng — Incense burner right in the skylight, in front of the main hall - sketch by architect Tran Xuan Hong

Ký họa của Phạm Ngọc Huy — Sketch by Pham Ngoc Huy

Ký họa của KTS Trần Thái Nguyên — Sketch by Architect Tran Thai Nguyen

Ký họa của KTS Bùi Hoàng Bảo — Sketch by Architect Bui Hoang Bao

The pagoda still has many valuable antiques: a set of bronze incense burners cast in 1886; a handwritten order by Captain D'Ariès forbidding French and Spanish soldiers from destroying the pagoda; two large bells cast in 1795 and 1830...

In 1993, Ba Pagoda was recognized as a national architectural and artistic relic.

(*): For the Chinese, Thien Hau Thanh Mau (real name Lam Mac Nuong, born in 1062 in Phuc Kien province, China) is the goddess who protects seafarers. People set aside the 23rd day of the third lunar month every year to commemorate her, so this is also the main festival day of the temple.